Alternative text, commonly referred to as alt text, serves as a primary descriptor for digital images. For online retailers, establishing an ecommerce alt text strategy is an essential component of digital accessibility and content management. When images fail to load or when assistive technologies like screen readers parse a page, alt text provides the descriptive context needed to understand the visual assets.
Why a Structured Workflow is Necessary
Without a formalized workflow, catalog updates often lead to missing, inconsistent, or poor-quality descriptions. Developing a systematic process helps ensure that every image added to an online catalog includes meaningful, descriptive text from the outset.
Key Pillars of an Effective Ecommerce Alt Text Strategy
A robust alt text strategy relies on clarity, objectivity, and structure. Rather than guessing what to write for each image, content teams should follow a standardized set of guidelines.
1. Descriptive Accuracy
Alt text should objectively describe what is visible in the image. Avoid subjective language, promotional phrases, or speculative interpretations. For example, instead of describing an item as a "beautiful summer dress," focus on concrete details: "A knee-length blue cotton A-line dress with white floral patterns."
2. Consistent Structural Patterns
Using a predictable formula helps content creators write efficiently and ensures a uniform experience for screen-reader users. A common pattern for product images might include:
- Product Type: The core item (e.g., leather boots, ceramic mug).
- Key Attributes: Distinctive colors, materials, patterns, or styles.
- Perspective or Context: The angle or setting of the shot (e.g., front-facing view, close-up of the stitching, styled on a model in an outdoor setting).
3. Contextual Variation
When a product listing contains multiple images, each image needs unique alt text that reflects its specific purpose. Avoid repeating the exact same text for every image on a product detail page. If one image shows the front of a handbag, another shows the interior lining, and a third shows the strap buckle, the alt text for each should highlight these distinct visual elements.
Designing the Step-by-Step Alt Text Workflow
To integrate alt text creation seamlessly into daily operations, merchants can design a workflow that aligns with their broader product content lifecycle.
Step 1: Establish Writing Standards
Document a clear style guide that defines length, tone, and formatting. Generally, keeping alt text descriptive yet concise is recommended, as assistive technologies often read text continuously without pause features. Avoid starting with phrases like "image of" or "picture of," as screen readers naturally convey that the element is an image.
Step 2: Assign Clear Ownership
Define who is responsible for writing and reviewing alt text. Depending on the team structure, this responsibility might fall to:
- Product Copywriters: Drafting alt text alongside standard product descriptions.
- Photographers or Asset Managers: Adding alt metadata during the image export and cataloging phase.
- Content Editors: Reviewing and validating alt text quality before publishing pages.
Step 3: Build Review Mechanisms
Include alt text checks as a standard step in the product publication checklist. Periodic audits of the active online store catalog can help identify missing or broken image descriptions that may have occurred during bulk uploads or inventory updates.
Evaluating Manual versus Automated Solutions
As product catalogs grow, merchants face a choice between manual alt text creation and automated generation tools.
The Manual Approach
Writing descriptions manually offers the highest level of accuracy and brand-aligned context. Human writers can capture subtle nuances, identify critical design details, and ensure that the tone remains natural. However, this approach requires dedicated time and labor, making it more challenging to scale for large catalogs with frequent inventory turns.
The Automated Approach
Using bulk-generation templates or vision-based artificial intelligence can accelerate the creation process across a large volume of assets. The primary tradeoff is the risk of generic, inaccurate, or redundant descriptions. AI models may misinterpret specific materials or miss subtle brand details. A hybrid model, where automation generates initial drafts and human editors review and refine them, can balance efficiency with accuracy.
Put this method into a controlled workflow
Ivyify helps Shopify teams use store context to find content opportunities, create English and Simplified Chinese drafts, review claims and links, and publish only after merchant approval. See how Ivyify works.